ROYAL OAK, Mich. – A Royal Oak police officer tackled a 20-year-old drag-racing suspect in mid-air as he was trying to speed away.
The takedown was a move you’d expect someone to learn in an NFL training camp rather than the police academy.
The WWE/WCW/ECW spear was caught on camera, and Royal Oak police it was the young motorists who were flagged for a penalty.
That tackle was made at the Barrels and Vines Shell gas station on Woodward Avenue near Normandy Road last Friday (Feb. 9) night.
When the weather turns nice, Woodward Avenue becomes a rolling car show at night, sometimes a drag strip with an engine noise that drives neighbors up the wall.
Some motorcycle riders at the pumps visited the gas station after blowing by Royal Oak police.
Officials say the officers pulled into the Shell fueling station, causing the riders to flee, except for the one whom the officer tackled.
Just as the rider started to move, the officer tackled the 20-year-old and his bike.
Ken Lucido owns a gas station, and he says the brave move was unbelievable.
Lucido says he is running a business, not a car show. Bikes and cars park at the pumps, blocking paying customers, and the spear was yet another example of driver drama that Lucido wants to see stop.
“They just love this corner for some reason,” said Lucido. “This has always been their corner, but they don’t always understand that we are just trying to do business. We actually have a Tim Hortons coming into the parking lot to push them even further out, so we will see in July if that actually pushes them out of here.”
The 20-year-old has been charged with fleeing from police, and officials say that the motorcycle was never registered as it did not have a plate on it.
He has a court date pending in the next couple of weeks.
